nuclear-news

Renewable energy employing 7,000 in Silicon Valley

Silicon Valley awash with smart grid development Smart Meters 1 Feb 2010 Clean technology, or cleantech, covers a wide array of technologies including construction materials, electric vehicles, renewable power, and smart meters. Silicon Valley – long a hotbed of cutting-edge development – is now becoming a global center for solar power and smart grid innovation.

The region is already considered to have the highest concentration of cleantech jobs in the United States. Much of the job creation has been in smart grid and solar technology. According to Next 10, an independent think tank, the Bay Area now has 7,000 people employed in renewable energy alone………..

Solar power and smart grid technology are a natural fit for the valley’s vast semiconductor industry.  Similar manufacturing processes are used to make chips and solar cells – which are essentially large and simple chips.  Smart grid technology is an extension of the telecommunications and software industries and its development is essential for the future………

Developing the smart grid is a high priority for the DOE which has provided $4.5 billion in stimulus grants for the effort.  Of that amount, $303 million has been sent to utilities in California.  Utilities all over the country are installing smart meters which are widely perceived to be a critical first step for a smart grid deployment.  According to Pike Research, 46 million were installed around the world in 2008 and 250 million will be installed within five years.

smart meter installations around the world have been a boon to valley-based Silver Spring Networks.  The company develops software that allows communication between the power provider and smart meters, load management sensors, and vehicle charging stations.

Silicon Valley awash with smart grid development

February 1, 2010 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | renewable, USA | energy efficiency, renewable energy, renewables, solar